Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, has pledged to partner on Women’s Empowerment in the Niger Delta region to assist women access finance to enhance their livelihood.
The Commission’s Managing Director, Dr Samuel Ogbuku, who spoke recently, during a courtesy visit by a delegation from the Union Bank Nigeria at the NDDC headquarters in Port Harcourt, revealed that they are looking at providing single-digit loans to support the women; noting that is why they are supporting the Niger Delta Chamber of Commerce to build entrepreneurs.
According to him, the Chamber of Commerce will help us to share the risks and build a database which will guide the NDDC in setting up empowerment schemes; adding that they are also setting up structures to monitor the performance of the entrepreneurs.
Furthermore, Ogbuku maintained that the registration of the Niger Delta Chamber of Commerce being championed by the NDDC was meant to extend the reach of the Commission’s programme of empowering the people of the Niger Delta region through entrepreneurial schemes and to be able to support entrepreneurial growth and fast track development.
The NDDC boss said that the Commission decided to adopt the Public Private Partnership, PPP, model to provide alternative sources of funding for its key development projects and programmes.
“The Niger Delta is the bedrock of the Nigerian economy and we need peace for development to thrive in the region. We need to get people engaged to ensure peace. Women in the region are very industrious but we need to strengthen them”, Ogbuku said.
Responding, Regional Business Executive, South, for Union Bank Nigeria, Mr. Chidi Ileka, stressed the need to support women with training to enable them succeed in businesses; adding that the bank was eager to partner with the NDDC to further empower women in the Niger Delta region and collaborate to address gender inequality and provide women in the region with enhanced opportunities for success.
He announced that the partnership would help women to access finance, development programmes, and affordable healthcare; noting that the initiative, founded on principles of gender equality and the desire to champion female empowerment, would equip women in the Niger Delta with the necessary tools and resources to achieve financial independence.
He explained: “We recognise the pivotal role that access to finance plays in entrepreneurial success and economic growth. By working with the NDDC, we hope to provide women with improved financial resources that will empower them to start or expand their businesses and achieve financial stability”.
The Head, Alpher and Women Lead Business in Union Bank, Mrs. Chioma Nwokike, while making presentation, said that the bank would like to strengthen women’s long-term financial security through savings and investment opportunities by facilitating women’s ability to save and invest; assuring that the joint initiative would encompass comprehensive business and personal development programmes.
“Through training, capacity building programmes and leadership development, women in the Niger Delta will acquire the skills and knowledge needed for entrepreneurship and personal growth”, Nwokike stated.
